“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Hebrews 12:1-2
Are you inspired by the thought that others have traveled the path that you now walk? While classically I think most would say yes, I have noted that myself and many others of my generation seem to have difficulty with the idea that we are sharing in an experience that others have already come through in victory. We don’t like that they beat it and we can’t seem to. We begin to compare, and shaming ourselves will resign to denial. “They don’t know what it’s like. It’s harder for me. How could they know, I am living it. “
In some ways, we are right. No one has lived the exact experience that we have and that needs to be respected. On the other hand, our need to be the lone conqueror deprives us of the value of inspiration. It keeps the focus on ourselves and makes everyone else the enemy. The writer of Hebrews does not think this way. he makes a direct connection: others went before me, so I should throw off the sin and weight that slows me down too. I can be like them. I can run the race well.
How hard do you work at being the only person who struggles like you? If we are honest, I think most would say that a pretty steady stream of personal justifications pass through our minds all day, every day. If we are going to defeat this addiction, we are going to have to accept that we are not alone. We are not isolated. We are not uniquely tempted. Like Hebrews 12, we will have to look at the cloud of witnesses and allow it to motivate us to through off our personal weights and sins. Then, setting our eyes on Jesus, not ourselves, we will be able to run with endurance to victory.